A ceiling ladder could be your stairway to storage nirvana

If you're struggling with limited storage space and wondering what to do with those items you don't need on a daily basis, then look up. What is going on in your roof? Could a ceiling ladder be the key to your storage solution?

Indeed, according to Robert Stewart of Attic Ladders, storage today is at a premium. "We're used to having lots of space, but these days, as we buy more, we have nowhere to put it," he says. "However, if you have a pitched roof, the problem is solved with a ceiling ladder."

Installing a ceiling ladder will give you safe, easy and comfortable access to your roof space and provide you with that extra storage room you've been looking for. "It also means that your items will remain insured, because the stuff you've stored in the garage probably isn't," says Robert.

When installed, the standard ceiling ladder folds away as a simple panel that sits flush with the ceiling. "It has a hook, which you can reach with a pole to pull the ladder down," Robert explains. "This unfolds the first sections and then you can manually unfold the last two sections. As they are tension-spring operated, you have to pull firmly to get them down, but this makes them easier and safer to put back up, as they naturally want to retract."

Once you have access to the roof, it's probably a good idea to consider dust proofing as well. "A lot of people find that, although they now have access to the roof, because it's so dirty they won't use it," says Robert.

Robert says that by simply installing battening, laying a floor, then creating a perimeter and installing insulation, you can very effectively prevent dust and spiders getting into your roof cavity and keep the space clean.

It is also possible to create a fully enclosed space, with ventilation, windows – the lot. "It can all be done in stages," says Robert. "Many people start with the ceiling ladder, then a few months later get the dust proofing done and so on."

Doing all this is surprisingly inexpensive, considering the gains to be had in safe, secure and clean storage space.